Average
by Sevanadium
Summary: Just the average day of Feliciano Vargas. Wake up, pester Ludwig at work, have dinner with Lovino as a guest, have a little bit too much wine, sleep.


Feliciano woke up when Ludwig did. That wasn't to say he got out of bed at the same time as Ludwig. It was just quite difficult to not get roused when his only source of heat in the frigid spring mornings left to do exercise.

It was semi-light already and it was also Monday, the equivalent to Sunday for Feliciano as he worked Saturdays and had Mondays off. A lot of restaurants were like that and Feliciano quite enjoyed the normality of being a waiter. There was something about it… he did not have to live up to any expectations. When he was on duty he was not the representation of Northern Italy, he was just Feliciano Vargas; a guy who was more flirtatious than necessary without being harassing. It was his boyish smile he knew it.

He rolled out of bed, literally. The duvet nearly came with him and for nearly a minute he contemplated just going back to sleep on the floor. Ludwig wouldn't' bee too pleased about that though. Standing up took more effort than he liked to admit.

The bathroom was just a few steps away. Feliciano preferred not to look at himself in the mirror when he had just woken up. Bed-hair and sleep wrinkles never made him feel too good. The bathroom was usually quite clean, with Ludwig meticulously packing all of Feliciano's things away when he was done, or sometimes when he wasn't done with them.

One the corner of the sink the cup with their toothbrushes sat. Feliciano did not understand it, but they had managed to amass five of them throughout the years. The only used two of them and even Ludwig was too lazy to throw them out.

Cold water stung his face. At least he was awake now and there was no way he was going to brush his teeth before breakfast—a habit Ludwig had tried to impose on him, but taste was too important to Feliciano. He groped around for the first towel he could find and dried his face with it. Ludwig should be okay with Feliciano using his towel to dry his face with, wouldn't he?

Right now he was not even sure of the time. Usually, he got up at around half past six in the morning on most days, except for Sundays. Those were his 'sleep in' days and often he didn't even think about getting up until about noon. Mondays could also be considered 'sleep in' days, but he would rather go to work with Ludwig.

Ludwig worked as a nurse at the local hospital. It was quite surprising to those who never knew Ludwig that well, but Feliciano could see why he would do something like that. For starters, Ludwig was not comfortable with doing much else in the medical field. Becoming a surgeon was an idea that was immediately thrown out of the window. He had explained to Feliciano that blood was something he would only expose himself to if there was no other choice. Feliciano could relate easily to that statement.

Blood was a part of being a nurse sometimes, but Ludwig seemed to enjoy the job too much to really let it bother him. He was gentle when he was at work and the patients would often be surprised to see such a well-built man that seemed to belong in some other career path tending to them. Ludwig was a gentle giant with a huge soft spot for his dogs.

The house was colder than the bedroom and bathroom and Feliciano decided to turn around and grab a jacket from his room. He did not care that he looked odd with pyjamas and a trench coat, he was cold.

Shuffling in the kitchen alerted him to the fact that Ludwig had come home from his morning run and was busy preparing breakfast. A few steps later the smell of German sausage assaulted his nose. How Ludwig could stand the smell, never mind the taste he didn't know. He found the subtle spices that flavoured Italian food a lot more enticing than the harsh tastes of German food.

"Good morning Luddy!" Feliciano called out loudly as he entered the kitchen. He hopped onto one of the bar stools behind the counter and waited to see if Ludwig would make anything for him or if he would have to make his own breakfast for the day.

"Why are you wearing—?" Ludwig shook his head at Feliciano's antics.

"I was cold." Was the only reason that Feliciano gave.

"I'm leaving for work in about an hour. Get dressed and be ready or you're staying home." The smell of frying sausages filled the air.

Feliciano wrinkled his nose slightly at the smell, seems like today Ludwig wasn't going to make breakfast for the both of them. He stood up and went to the cupboard, nothing. He grabbed the only thing he could even think about eating, the porridge.

He made a mental note to get something better for breakfast, like Coco Pops or something.

Ludwig was already nearly finished eating by the time Feliciano had finished making the porridge. With a sigh he sat down and grabbed a spoon to eat it, but not before he put nearly half the container's worth of sugar into the bowl.

"Feliciano, you should hurry up. I'm leaving in thirty minutes and you're in your pyjamas."

"So are you." Feliciano said just after taking a spoon of porridge.

"Don't eat with your mouth full," Ludwig scolded Feliciano.

Feliciano swallowed, "Sorry."

Feliciano continued to try and eat the porridge as quickly as he could. He couldn't stand the taste, all cardboard-like and goopy, but the idea of being hungry all day was even worse so he managed to stomach it. He watched as Ludwig finished breakfast and rinsed the plates before putting them into the dishwasher.

"I'm going to shower now. Be ready in twenty minutes,"

Feliciano looked at the clock on the wall, "But we're leaving in twenty-five minutes."

"Exactly," Ludwig have him a look that matched his statement. His blue eyes showing every emotion he felt whether he liked it or not.

"That's not enough time to shower!" Feliciano said indignantly.

"You can shower when we get home." Ludwig wiped the counter tops quickly with a rag before rinsing it out under the tap.

"We can share?" Feliciano suggested.

Ludwig's eyes turned serious. "That's something that couples do. My shower is too small anyways."

Feliciano nodded before turning back to the remnant s of his porridge. They lived in quite a small place. Ludwig was not one to waste money on extravagant things. The flat had two bedrooms—Ludwig's bedroom and Ludwig's office. Feliciano did not mind sleeping in the same bed as Ludwig and even if he had his own room he probably would have done similar.

They weren't a couple. Many people assumed they were and were corrected by a rather red Ludwig if they said anything about it. Feliciano was perfectly fine with it and so was Ludwig. They were just friends.

Feliciano finished off the last mouthful of his porridge before he half-heartedly ran water into the bowl and left it in the sink. He could come back later to clean it, maybe Ludwig will do it for him though.

He jogged up the stairs and went into their shared room. The shower was on and the bathroom door was closed. Feliciano usually left the bathroom door open—he was not a stickler for modestly, but Ludwig was a lot more modest and insisted on having his own privacy.

The water turned off and Feliciano had just finished shimmying into his pants for the day. He had decided to dress a lot more casual than he usually did. Ludwig had the job at the hospital, not him.

Sneakers or boots? That was the question that was going through Feliciano's head as the bathroom door opened and Ludwig came out with a towel wrapped around his waist. Feliciano grabbed the sneakers and began to put them on.

Feliciano sat on the floor and began to put the black sneakers on. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Ludwig grabbed his clothes for the day, they had already been prepared the night before and put them on without fully disturbing the towel until he was ready.

"Why are you so private?" Feliciano asked. He shrugged as he got his other shoe on, "It's not anything I haven't seen before."

Ludwig mimicked Feliciano's shrug and dropped his towel into the laundry basket.

"Can you tie my shoe laces for me?" Feliciano asked from his seat on the floor.

"I taught you how to do them." Ludwig was still in the bathroom. He was now meticulously combing his hair back with gel. He had a basic uniform on, but would change into the nurse's uniform once he got to the hospital.

"Yours are always so nice and neat." Feliciano whined.

Ludwig grudgingly agreed. Feliciano watched him finish fixing his hair and he washed his hands before drying them. Feliciano could never understand why Ludwig slicked his hair back. He looked so much better with it loose and allowed to have some personality. Feliciano did not get to see Ludwig with his hair loose very much, usually when it was pulled down by water after his showers and fluffed u once it had been towel-dried.

Ludwig bent down onto one knee and tied each of Feliciano's laces in a well-practised knot.

"It's time to leave." Ludwig said determinedly.

"Okay," Feliciano sprung onto his feet and followed Ludwig out of the door.

"Close the door behind you. I don't want the dogs on our bed." Ludwig called out from halfway down the stairs.

Feliciano hurriedly back tracked and closed the door behind him, making sure that it clicked closed. He turned around and bounded down the stairs.

"It's gonna be nice to go to the hospital with you. I can talk to some of the patients. They get very lonely sometimes," Feliciano babbled as Ludwig double checked that they had everything.

"They do." Ludwig agreed. Feliciano enjoyed talking to the people at the hospital. He got to hear all of their stories and it was nice to know that he had brightened someone's day.

Once they had everything and Feliciano had said goodbye to each of Ludwig's dogs individually he got up and went out the open door. Ludwig had already taken the car out of the garage and was waiting in the road.

Feliciano hurried and got into the passenger seat. He put on his safety belt and closed his eyes. The sun felt peaceful on his face and Ludwig was a careful driver—unlike himself—so the ride was mostly smooth.

He didn't manage to fall asleep before Ludwig pulled into the staff parking at the hospital. After they had both gotten out Ludwig locked the car and they walked to the entrance.

"I'll leave you to your own devices today. Please don't get in trouble."

Feliciano waved wildly to the receptionist as he listened to Ludwig.

"Understood," Feliciano said with a mock salute.

They went in their different directions—Ludwig to the staff section of the hospital, Feliciano to the medical ward. The staff at the hospital were not too strict with him talking to the patients and if other visitors came during visiting hours he would always leave.

He hated it when someone didn't get visitors and often saw people come and go in his weekly visits. It was not often that he ventured to the surgical ward. More because the people were a lot sicker and he did not like disturbing them when they needed all the rest they could get.

Quite often he would help out if the staff needed some things such as extra blankets for the patients. Feliciano enjoyed helping out and would make sure he could do what he could.

He wiled away the early morning by speaking to the various patients.

It was really quite interesting. There was an old man—Feliciano was not sure of his age. It did not take long for their conversation to move to the Second World War.

"And I feel so sorry for that kid," The man was in the middle of recounting one of his stories. He had been in the Italian army and had seen some brutalities, but not much, "He was always following that German leader around and he got sent to the camp for it."

Feliciano shrugged to hide his shiver, "I bet you he's still alive and well. Maybe he even still talks to the German guy he was such good friends with." Feliciano suggested. His face was no longer as innocently cheerful as it had been, but held a look of intense sadness.

"You look like him, you know that?"

Feliciano smiled. "They say that everyone had a doppelganger on the planet. I could be his?"

Ludwig knocked on the doorframe to alert the old man of his arrival. The old man looked between them both for a few seconds before breaking out into a toothless smile.

"I somehow doubt that."

Feliciano waved at Ludwig from his seat next to the old man's bed.

"I'll see you next week, sir." Feliciano gave a salute to the old man as a way of acknowledging what he was seeing. He stood up and walked out of the door so that Ludwig could do what he needed to.

"See you after lunch Luddy. Remember we're having Lovi over tonight so we'll have to go to the shops." Feliciano left the room.

Feliciano walked slowly down the halls of the small hospital. It was only two stories high, but was more than large enough to be one of the better ones in the area. The bright fluorescent lighting reflected off of the walls ceilings. The floor was not white but a mottled grey with wavy blue lines. In a way, Feliciano was thankful that not all of it was luminous white.

On the left there were large windows that let warm sunlight into the halls. The door to a small garden was in a few steps. It had a sign on the door proclaiming that it was for smokers.

Feliciano ignored the sign and went out into the garden. The bright sunlight hurt his golden eyes more than they did Ludwig's light blue ones. He sat down at one of the tables and leaned on his palms.

Above him the sky was bright blue and many clouds floated along the sky. Flowers of various colours soaked up the rays of the sun greedily. An ashtray innocently on the table it was not filled with cigarette butts, but it was not empty either.

In all honesty Feliciano was not one who enjoyed hospitals. The death and sickness clung to him even though these were not his people. This hospital was not that bad. Maybe it was because he also had Ludwig with him.

Feliciano looked up just in time to see Ludwig walking across the hallway that he was in previously. He waved again and smiled broadly as he saw Ludwig. Ludwig gave a small nod of his head in acknowledgement.

He continued to sit on the bench, his legs swinging idly. There was not much of a breeze in the enclosed garden but it only added to the peaceful atmosphere of the place, despite how he was at a hospital.

The door that led into the doorway opened with a slight squeak and Feliciano opened his eyes to see Ludwig coming out. He was decked in nearly all white and looked to be more of a doctor than a nurse. He must had have fallen asleep at some point because the sun had visibly moved and Feliciano's face felt hot from the sun.

"Are you alright Feliciano?" Ludwig asked as he sat down next to Feliciano on the bench.

"Yep!"

"Lunch is nearly over, you should eat something. I'm leaving early so make sure you're ready to leave by three." Ludwig said.

Ludwig's lunch was usually from twelve until one, which meant that there were two more hours until Feliciano was going to leave the hospital. They stood up and Feliciano gave Ludwig a hug.

"I'll see you in two hours?" He asked. Feliciano pushed back his fringe.

"Two hours." Ludwig repeated as affirmation.

They walked slowly back into the hospital and throughout the halls. Ludwig was nearly done doing his rounds and was going to the surgical ward. Once he reached the door Feliciano stopped as Ludwig went through.

"I'll see you in a few moments." He smiled. Usually, he wasn't allowed in the surgical ward when it was not visiting hours due to the fact that the patients needed more rest than the others. Feliciano respected that and was glad they allowed him to bend the rules for the medical ward at least.

Feliciano travelled to the reception and sat down in one of the couches. They were almost comfortable and that really irked Feliciano. Couches were usually comfortable or they were not.

He didn't pay too much attention to the happenings around him and preferred to page through the pile of magazines that were scattered around the area. Many of the pages were old and torn, but it wasn't too much of an issue. Many of the quizzes had been filled in multiple times and Feliciano was filing in one of the said quizzes when Ludwig walked.

"Are we going now?" Feliciano stood up and dusted off his shirt and pants.

Ludwig held up the car keys, "Right now."

The car ride to the shops was mostly uneventful as was the trip back. Feliciano had loaded the trolley with enough ingredients to feed a small family of at least eight. Well, a small family in Feliciano's opinion. Ludwig had commented on why he didn't just buy the ready-made things.

It totally did not escalate into a small argument as to why homemade food is the only thing to eat and that ready-made stuff should never be eaten ever.

Somehow, they both managed to make it out of the hospital alive and got back to the house. Feliciano immediately started to cook before Ludwig could even get all of the groceries from the boot to the countertops.

"'Where's the pasta?" Feliciano asked. HE poked his head into all of the bags.

"I've already packed it away Ludwig said. He was _attempting_ to pack away the things, but Feliciano was not paying attention to what he had and had not packed away so he kept asking him where things were.

"And the salt?"

"We didn't even buy salt."

"Where is it though?" Feliciano already had the sauce going and would be nearly done. He was panicking just the slightest bit because Lovino would be there in less than thirty minutes—if he wasn't late like he usually was.

"Second cupboard from the stove, middle shelf," Ludwig gave the exact position of the salt shaker.

Feliciano grabbed it from its spot.

"Thanks Luddy!" He called out before moving on to his next task in the kitchen.

Feliciano was not worrying over dessert. He had nagged Ludwig the night before and he had made a large cake. Ludwig was, in Feliciano's opinion, one of the best people to ask when one needed a cake baked for them. His cakes were always just the right consistency and they were moist and not too heavy. The icing was just right—not too sweet, yet not too plain. Feliciano was definitely one for Ludwig's cakes.

A knock on the door alerted them to Lovino's arrival. Feliciano was particularly excited as he had not seen Feliciano in a while and very rarely did he have his brother over, even if it was just for dinner. There was no doubt in Feliciano's mind that Lovino would be making his excuses to leave as soon as he was done.

Feliciano opened the door to see a vaguely disgruntled Lovino standing there. He was holding a bottle of wine and was bundled up in winter clothes. Lovino had never quite gotten used to German weather like Feliciano had and often found it freezing when it was mildly warm.

"Hello Lovi!" Feliciano hugged his brother and probably squeezed just a little bit too hard.

"You're hurting me dammit!" Lovino was always a bit… grumpy, but Feliciano didn't mind. He could feel that Lovino was hugging him back with the arm that was not holding the wine.

Feliciano let go and Lovino was left standing slightly awkwardly in front of the door.

"I've just finished dinner, and I got Luddy to make one of his famous cakes for dessert. I know you like them."

"It better be pasta for dinner and none of that crappy German food." It seemed like Lovino was not adverse to Ludwig's cake at all.

"Lovi you shouldn't be so rude." Feliciano reprimanded even though he knew that it would be near impossible to change his older brother's personality. He held out his hand, "I'll take the wine. Make yourself at home; the house is mine as much as it is Ludwig's"

Lovino gave the wine over and let himself fall heavily onto the couch. "Why did you even live with that German bastard? You better not be doing anything with him." Lovino readied himself to stand up immediately after he sat down.

"I'm just friends with your brother." Ludwig said. He stood in the entrance to the lounge.

Lovino huffed and raised an eyebrow. Feliciano couldn't understand how Lovino had so much control over that one eyebrow. He watched almost in awe as the eyebrow lifted without affecting any other part of his face. Whenever Feliciano tried to do that he always ended up pulling the weirdest faces.

"Don't worry brother. Ludwig and I have talked it over. We really don't have romantic feelings for each other."

Feliciano was still holding the wine bottle. He quickly checked out the label. It was quite a good one apparently. Trust Lovino to never give anything of subpar quality, even to a small gathering.

"I'll set the table~" Feliciano called out before he left the lounge to go into the kitchen. He needed to grab all of the stuff from the cupboards and take it to the dining room before he could start setting the table.

That left Lovino with only Ludwig. That only added to the slightly tense atmosphere. Inwardly Lovino could not wait until the wine glasses were brought out and he could drink his share of the bottle he had brought.

"You're a nurse now?" Lovino asked. He crossed his arms over his chest. Feliciano always kept him updated over what had been happening between the two of them. Lovino hated it in a sense, but it was nice to know how his brother was. Maybe he should consider writing back sometimes?

Ludwig nodded. He took a few steps into the lounge. Lovino looked around. He had not actually been here since they moved into this house. The lounge was warmly decorated-Feliciano's doing he could easily see that. The walls were covered in various paintings that Feliciano had done over the years and on the mantel above the fireplace there were a few picture of the people that Feliciano called friends.

"Isn't that a bit of a girly job?" Lovino was a bastard. He really was, but come on, being a nurse was a bit of an odd job for Ludwig of all people.

"There are lots of male nurses." Ludwig supplied.

"You seem like more of a doctor..." Lovino trailed off. He could see that change in Ludwig's usually stoic expression.

"It's because of the wars that you don't do that sort of stuff, isn't it?" Lovino asked.

"I still want to help."

Lovino shook his head slightly. He knew that he was harsh on Ludwig, but it was not Ludwig's fault that he had a bad leader.

"I understand," Lovino began, "You know, I can't stand the smell of cooking meat."

Ludwig's eyes felt as if they were boring into his.

"I'm sorry." Lovino heard Ludwig say.

Lovino moved his arm to rest on the couch, "It wasn't your fault. We all have problems." He was a complete ham-head when he wanted to show that he understood things.

Ludwig smiled, just slightly, but it was now that Lovino could understand why Feliciano spent so much time with Ludwig. The man was really harsh on the outside, but he was a person just like everyone else.

"Okay guys, the table's set!" Feliciano called out from the dining room, "The pasta's also ready so we can eat now."

Once everyone was settled they began to eat. Things were mostly silent, punctuated by the odd remark about someone's day or a question about what ingredients were used.

Feliciano could see that Romano was acting slightly different. He knew that his brother was slightly cold to Ludwig. The bottle of wine was mostly finished by the end of dinner so for dessert Feliciano cracked open one of his own bottles.

Despite what Lovino had been saying he stayed at Ludwig and Feliciano's house for a good two hours after dessert was done.

They were all just the slightest bit tipsy, Feliciano had refused to open yet another bottle so they had moved on to Ludwig's beer, which they drunk a lot faster than the wine.

"Bye Lovi, see you soon!" Feliciano called out. His cheeks were flushed red from the alcohol.

Lovino walked to the awaiting cab.

"I'll see ya at some point." His voice was rougher, and deeper than it usually was, he stepped into the cab and quickly told the address of his hotel to the driver. He had come up to Germany to see Feliciano before continuing on to Spain. He was planning to start the next leg of the journey in the morning after he had gotten some sleep.

Ludwig waved to the retreating figure of Lovino. Once the car door closed they waited until Lovino's cab was gone before they went back into the house.

"Do we have to do the cleaning now?" Feliciano whined as he started up the stairs to their shared room.

Ludwig gave it a few moments of thought, "I guess we can."

Feliciano bounded up the rest of the stairs.

Ludwig entered the room to see Feliciano nearly fully dressed in his pyjamas, or rather naked enough to be considered to be wearing pyjamas. He could see the toned muscles of Feliciano's torso, his legs were hidden by the pants he was wearing. Sometimes he wondered why Feliciano just chose to stay with him in a platonic relationship.

He took off his shirt—he was definitely tipsy, there's no way he would just do that in plain view of anyoone.

"Feliciano?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you live with me?"' He paused, waiting for the words he needed to come to him, "You could be with anyone, but you choose me."

"I like you Luddy." Feliciano pulled the covers back and settled himself into bed.

"As a friend?" Ludwig needed some clarification on this subject he knew that they were just friends. They had discussed it so many times—with others more than between themselves.

Feliciano nodded eagerly from his position from under the duvet, "As a friend."

Ludwig finished getting ready for bed. It was still early in the night, but both of them had work in the morning. He got under the covers and felt Feliciano snuggle up to him.

"I love you Luddy." Feliciano said.

Feliciano often said those words. The first few times Ludwig had been confused until Feliciano had explained to him that there were different kinds of love and that love did not necessarily equal sex and romance.

It took nearly a full minute for Ludwig to reply, "And I you."

It was these sorts of days that Ludwig liked the most. The ones where they were doing all sorts of things were fun, but this kind of day was his favourite. They were the ones that he could look back on and feel a warmth in his heart. He loved these completely average days more than anything and he doubted he would want to give them up.


End file.
